Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection AFC 1960/001 Prepared by Michelle Forner American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Washington, D.C. August 1994 Encoded by Nora Yeh, March 2012 Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/eadafc.af011004 Collection Summary Collection Number: AFC 1960/001 Title: Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection Inclusive Dates: 1957-1989 Bulk Dates: 1959, 1960-1962 Repository: Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.afc/folklife.home Extent (Manuscripts): 2 boxes (1.25 linear feet) Extent (Manuscripts): 1 map Extent (Sound Recordings): 2 sound discs : analog, 33 1/3 rpm ; 12 in. Extent (Sound Recordings): 70 sound tape reels (ca. 70 hrs.) : analog, 2 track ; 7 in. Extent (Graphic Images): 18 photographic prints : black and white; 3 x 5 in. Collector: Bowles, Paul, 1910-1999, collector. Collector: Archive of Folk Song (U.S.), collector. Languages: English, Arabic, Berber, and Hebrew Language(s): Abstract: An ethnographic field collection of sound recordings, photographs, and accompanying documentation of Moroccan folk, popular, and art music. The collection includes recordings Paul Bowles made in 1959 during a four-month field project sponsored by the Library of Congress with a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation as well as additional field recordings that he and Christopher Wanklyn made between 1960 and 1962. Scope and Content The collection includes dance music, secular music, music for Ramadan and other Islamic rites, and music for animistic rituals. Berber and Arab music predominates, and Sephardic liturgical music and folk songs are included. Dance was often integral to the music events. Field notes and correspondence describe the recording events (including dance) and circumstances of the project. Manuscripts in English. Sound recordings in Berber languages, Arabic, and Hebrew. The Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection consists of audio recordings, photographs, and accompanying documentation that focus primarily on one recording project. With a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation and sponsorship from the Library of Congress, Paul Bowles spent the months of August to September of 1959 traveling throughout Morocco recording approximately 60 hours of traditional folk, art, and popular music. Bowles collected in 23 villages, towns, and cities along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts, from Goulimine in the Sahara to Segangan in the Rif country, and inland through the Middle and Grand Atlas ranges to Zagora in the Anti-Atlas. Due to the political situation at the time, Bowles was not able to record in the southeastern region. In 1963, the Library acquired five additional recordings of Moroccan music made by Bowles in 1960-19 62. In 1972, the Library issued a two-record set of selections from the collection. A nine-page descriptive booklet accompanies the set. The heterogenous recordings reflect the variety of Moroccan culture. From urban professionals and religious singers to rural and nomadic tribespeople, the musicians performed vocal and instrumental music. The collection includes dance music, secular music, music for Ramadan and other Islamic rites, and music for animistic rituals. Berber and Arab music predominates, and a considerable variety of styles emerges from the survey of different areas and tribes. Some selections exhibit traces of the antique Andalusian style, reflecting Morocco's historic relationship to Spain. Musical examples originally derived from Mauritania, West Africa, and the Sudan demonstrate the influence of migrations and cultural interchanges across the Sahara and along the Atlantic coast. In addition, there are examples of Sephardic liturgical music and other folksongs from the historic Jewish communities in Essaouira and Meknes. Several recordings feature the rare zamar, a double-reed instrument fitted with two mouthpieces and two bulls' horn resonators. Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection 2 Dance often was integral to the music events; as Bowles pointed out, usually "music and dance are one thing" to the peoples of Morocco, especially the Berber tribes. In the field notes on the music, Bowles often alluded to the concurrent dancing and sometimes gave movement description. He recorded, among other things, music that accompanied the guedra dance from the village of Goulimine, ahouache (music and dance events) of the Anti-Atlas and Grand Atlas, the aqlal (dance ceremony) in the Draa Valley, Pre-Sahara, and the sqel (sword dance) of the Draaoua people of Zagora, Moroccan Sahara. The appendix lists the field notes of recordings where dance was specifically described or alluded to in Bowles' notes or in the LP recording booklet. The manuscripts (correspondence and field notes) describe not only the content of the recording project, but also the bureaucratic, political, and cultural context of conducting ethnographic fieldwork in the late 1950s. They highlight the cultural and political situation in the newly- independent Morocco as well as the customs of different cultural groups. The correspondence between Bowles and LC staff during the project offers additional insight into the circumstances and content of the recordings, while the photographs of several performance events provide visual documentation that supplements those recordings. Field notes provide substantial information on the following dances: Guedra, Ahouach, Taskiouine, Gnaoui. Information is also found on the following dances: Aqlal, Ahmeilou, Tahouacht, and dances of the Haha tribe. Biography Paul Bowles, an American-born writer, composer, and folk music collector, lived in Morocco beginning in the late 1930s. He has been described as the father of the Beat movement and a prominent figure in the American expatriate community in Tangier, Morocco. A well-known composer, his scores include the incidental music to such plays as Tennessee Williams' "The Glass Menagerie" and "Sweet Bird of Youth"; he worked with other artists such as Orson Wells, Elia Kazan, and Salvador Dali. As an author, he is best known for his novels such as The Sheltering Sky, Let It Come Down, and The Spider's House, and for his collections of short stories and travel essays. Extensive travel in Europe, North Africa, and South America provided material for his literary works as well as opportunities to collect folk music. He married novelist Jane Auer (1917-1973) in 1938. Paul Bowles died November 18, 1999 at the age of 88. Selected Search Terms The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject and listed alphabetically therein. For specific dance-related material, please see Appendix A. People Bowles, Paul, 1910-1999, collector. Bowles, Paul, 1910-1999--Correspondence. Bowles, Paul, 1910-1999--Ethnomusicological collections. Wanklyn, Christopher, collector. Organization Archive of Folk Song (U.S.), collector, sponsor. Subjects Arabs--Morocco--Music. Berbers--Clothing--Morocco. Berbers--Morocco--Music. Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection 3 Dance music--Morocco. Dance--Morocco. Field recordings--Morocco. Folk music--Morocco. Islamic music--Morocco. Jews, Moroccan--Music. Music--Morocco. Musical instruments--Morocco--Photographs. Musicians--Morocco--Photographs. Percussion music--Morocco. Popular music--Morocco. Rites and ceremonies--Morocco. Sephardim--Morocco--Music. Songs, Arabic--Morocco. Songs, Berber--Morocco. Sword-dance--Morocco. Titles Music of Morocco from the Archive of Folk Song Form/Genre Ethnography. Field notes. Field recordings. Manuscripts. Maps. Microfilms. Photographic prints. Sound recordings. Processing History The original processing was done and finding aid was prepared by Michelle Forner for a dance grant, therefore an appendix includes a list of dance related information. Scanned photographic prints and map on 2 CDs, created in June 2010 for reference purpose, are in Box 2. The collection includes correspondence and processing for the production of the album, Music of Morocco from the Archive of Folk Song. Arrangement Organized by format into the following series: I. Manuscripts; II. Microfilm; III. Sound Recordings; IV. Photographs; V. Map. The index to recordings prepared by Bowles, arranged numerically by tape side in chronological order, includes AFS numbers, song titles, performers, and recording locations. The field notes, also arranged numerically by tape side in chronological order, provide more detailed description of each recording, including date, place, performers, song titles, musical instruments, and other pertinent information. Access Listening and viewing access to the collection is unrestricted. Duplication of the recorded materials may be governed by copyright and other restrictions. Duplication for publication purposes requires Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection 4 the prior written permission of the collector's estate. Address available in the American Folklife Center. Preferred Citation Paul Bowles Moroccan Music Collection (AFC 1960/001), Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Related Publications Bowles, Paul. Record notes to Music of Morocca From the Archive of Folk Song recorded and edited by Paul Bowles. Recording Laboratory AFS L63 and L64. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1972. 12 pp. A copy is in Box 1, Folder 10 of this collection. Bowles, Paul. " The Rif, to Music." In Their Heads are Green and Their Hands are Blue, 97-141.